Robust Transport of the Edge Modes along the Photonic Topological Interfaces of Different Configurations

Abstract

Two-dimensional photonic crystals made of six air holes on a core-shell dielectric material has been proposed to study the newly emerged photonic quantum spin Hall insulator. Specifically, radii modification of the air holes and core-shell without breaking time-reversal (TR) symmetry are supported by the C_6 point group symmetry upon a proposed scheme. It is shown that multiple topological transitions from an ordinary insulator with zero spin Chern number (Cs) to a topological insulator with a non-zero Cs can be achieved by modifying the geometry of the photonic structure. Studying the two counter-propagating helical edge modes which have the opposite group velocities are of individual importance for various optical purposes like scattering-free waveguides protected to various defects, disorders and strong light-matter interactions. We show that topological edge states demonstrate slow light characteristics. The findings emphasize the fact that exploring topological phase transition can be applied as a unique approach for realizing light transport, robust energy transportation and slow light in integrated photonic circuits and devices.